The Wiggles
| past_members = }}The Wiggles are an Australian children's music group formed in Sydney, New South Wales in 1991. Since 2013, the group members are Anthony Field, Lachlan Gillespie, Simon Pryce, and Emma Watkins. The original members were Field, Phillip Wilcher, Murray Cook, Greg Page, and Jeff Fatt. Wilcher left the group after their first album. Page retired in 2006 due to ill health and was replaced by understudy Sam Moran, but returned in 2012, replacing Moran. At the end of 2012, Page, Cook, and Fatt retired, and were replaced by Gillespie, Pryce, and Watkins. Cook and Fatt retained their shareholding in the group and all three continued to have input into its creative and production aspects. Field and Fatt were members of the Australian pop band The Cockroaches in the 1980s, and Cook was a member of several bands before meeting Field and Page at Macquarie University, where they were studying to become pre-school teachers. In 1991, Field was inspired to create an album of children's music based upon concepts of early childhood education, and enlisted Cook, Page, and Fatt to assist him. They began touring to promote the album, and became so successful, they quit their teaching jobs to perform full-time. The group augmented their act with animal characters Dorothy the Dinosaur, Henry the Octopus, and Wags the Dog, as well as the character Captain Feathersword, played by Paul Paddick since 1993. They travelled with a small group of dancers, which later grew into a larger troupe. The group's DVDs, CDs, and television programs have been produced independently since their inception. Their high point came in the early 2000s, after they broke into the American market. The group was formally consolidated in 2005. They were listed at the top of Business Review Weekly s top-earning Australian entertainers four years in a row, and earned A$45 million in 2009. In 2011, the worldwide recession hit The Wiggles, as it had done for many Australian entertainers; they earned $28 million, but they still appeared second on BRW's list that year. The Wiggles have enjoyed almost universal approval throughout their history, and their music has been played in pre-schools all over the world. They have earned several Platinum, Double Platinum and Multi-Platinum records, as well as sold 23 million DVDs and 7 million CDs, and have performed, on average, to one million people per year. The group has also earned multiple Australasian Performing Rights Association (APRA) and Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Music Awards. History Background (1988–91) TBA. Early career (1991–93) TBA. Success at home and abroad (1993–2004) TBA. Pages retirement (2005–06) TBA. Moran era (2006–12) Although Moran's transition as The Wiggles' lead singer was "smooth" for the young children of their audience, it was more difficult for their parents. Moran said that "most children understood". Field reported that by the group's 20th anniversary in 2011, due to the ever-changing nature of their audience, most of their young fans were unfamiliar with Page. Cook stated that Moran's transition was challenging for the group because since he replaced their lead singer, it changed their sound. Fatt characterised Moran's singing style as more operatic, so they chose different keys to sing and perform. The Wiggles never publicly disclosed how much Moran was paid, but it was reported that he earned $200,000 per year. Moran was featured in his first DVD and CD as a member of the group in early 2008, and a sixth season of The Wiggles' television series featuring Moran was filmed and began airing in Australia. At the end of 2007, The Wiggles donated their complete back catalogue of 27 master tapes to Australia's National Film and Sound Archive. Their business ventures during these years included opening up "Wiggles World" sections in theme parks in North America and the Arab World, internet offerings, the creation of new television shows, and a five-year-long partnership with the digital cable channel Sprout in 2009. In December 2010, Cinemalive beamed a Wiggles concert live from Acer Arena into movie theatres all over Australia, for children and their families unable to attend their shows. In early July 2011, founding member Fatt developed arrhythmia and underwent "urgent but routine" heart surgery, when he was fitted with a pacemaker after feeling unwell for several weeks and blacking out. He missed the group's US tour as a result, after not missing a show in 20 years. Also in mid-2011, The Wiggles celebrated their 20th anniversary with circus-themed shows and performances throughout Australia and the outback in a circus tent, as well as a "physically grueling" birthday-themed tour of 90 shows throughout Australia, which Paul Field called "one of the biggest of their careers". Sydney's Powerhouse Museum commemorated the group's anniversary with an exhibit that displayed Wiggles memorabilia. In 2011, the worldwide financial crisis hit the group, and they recorded their first drop in revenues in 10 years, at approximately $2.5 million, a total decrease of 28 percent. Royalties partially offset the difference between their 2010 and 2011 revenues. Their managing director Mike Conway called 2011 their toughest year financially. For the first time, they had negative equity, with more liabilities than assets, and the owners had to provide the funds for them to continue operations. Conway stated that their losses were due to less touring time in the US, difficulties in placing their DVDs in Walmart, and their required investment in a new digital platform. Reunion with Page (2012) TBA. Departure of Page, Cook and Fatt (2012) TBA. "New Wiggles" era (2013–present) TBA. Band members Current members * Anthony Field – Blue Wiggle (1991–present) * Lachlan Gillespie – Purple Wiggle (2013–present) * Simon Pryce – Red Wiggle (2013–present) * Emma Watkins – Yellow Wiggle (2013–present) Former members * Murray Cook – Red Wiggle (1991–2012) * Jeff Fatt – Purple Wiggle (1991–2012) * Greg Page – Yellow Wiggle (1991–2006; 2012) * Phillip Wilcher (1991–1992) * Sam Moran – Yellow Wiggle (2006–2012) Musical style TBA. Educational theory TBA. Brand and finances TBA. Reception TBA. Discography Studio albums * The Wiggles (1991) * Here Comes a Song (1992) * Stories and Songs: The Adventures of Captain Feathersword the Friendly Pirate (1993) * Yummy Yummy (1994) * Big Red Car (1995) * Wake Up Jeff! (1996) * Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas (1996) * The Wiggles Movie Soundtrack (1997) * Toot, Toot! (1998) * It's a Wiggly Wiggly World (2000) * Wiggle Time! (2000) * Yule Be Wiggling (2000) * Hoop Dee Doo: It's a Wiggly Party (2001) * Wiggly Safari (2002) * Wiggle Bay (2002) * Go to Sleep Jeff! (2003) * Whoo Hoo! Wiggly Gremlins! (2003) * Top of the Tots (2003) * Cold Spaghetti Western (2004) * Santa's Rockin'! (2004) * Sailing Around the World (2005) * Here Comes the Big Red Car (2006) * It's Time to Wake Up Jeff! (2006) * Splish Splash Big Red Boat (2006) * Racing to the Rainbow (2006) * Getting Strong! (2007) * Pop Go the Wiggles! (2007) * You Make Me Feel Like Dancing (2008) * Sing a Song of Wiggles (2008) * Go Bananas! (2009) * Hot Poppin' Popcorn (2009) * Let's Eat (2010) * Ukulele Baby! (2011) * It's Always Christmas with You! (2011) * Surfer Jeff (2012) * Taking Off! (2013) * Furry Tales (2013) * Pumpkin Face (2013) * Go Santa Go! (2013) * Apples & Bananas (2014) * Wiggle House (2014) * Rock & Roll Preschool (2015) * Meet the Orchestra! (2015) * Wiggle Town! (2016) * Carnival of the Animals (2016) * Dance Dance! (2016) * Nursery Rhymes (2017) * Duets (2017) * Wiggly, Wiggly Christmas! (2017) * Nursery Rhymes 2 (2018) * Wiggle Pop! (2018) * Big Ballet Day! (2019) * Party Time! (2019) Footnotes TBA. References TBA. Works cited TBA. External links TBA. Category:Television series Category:The Wiggles